Mims, Florida (CNN) – As John Bundy loads his red commercial lawn mower into a flatbed trailer, it's hard to believe he used to manage a team of NASA shuttle workers.

Bundy, who sports a scruffy beard and speaks with a thick, Southern drawl, worked at the Kennedy Space Center for 31 years, the last six years as a manager in the Orbiter Processing Facility, a shuttle hangar.

Bundy is one of 8,000 shuttle workers laid off or facing termination from Florida's Kennedy Space Center after the end of NASA's shuttle program. This month marks one year since the program ended with the launch and landing of Shuttle Atlantis.

After his layoff in October 2010, Bundy searched for work for months before starting his own lawn business.

“I’ve tried a painting company, I’ve tried a couple of landscape companies, I’ve tried with the county as far as working outside with the parks and recs (recreations),” he said.

The shock of no longer working at Kennedy Space Center took months for Bundy to process.

“There is life after KSC, I promise you it will go on. You just got to get up and go to work,” he said.

Brevard County, home of Kennedy Space Center, saw unemployment spike to more than 11% after the shuttle layoffs, according to Judy Blanchard with Brevard Workforce. In addition to the 7,400 shuttle workers already laid off, another 600 will be terminated by December, she said.

Today, most of Florida's former shuttle workers have found work, according to a recent survey conducted by Brevard Workforce, which receives state and federal funding to help these highly skilled workers find jobs.

Of the 5,690 former shuttle workers who responded to the survey, 57% said they are working, while the remaining 43% are either retired or unemployed. Of the 3,234 who said they have found employment, most of them, 72%, say they are working in Florida.

Florida authorities say they've made steps toward transforming the Space Coast into more than just a launch site for shuttles. That, according to the state's Space Coast Economic Development Commission, has helped "put a serious dent" in Brevard County's unemployment rate, which is 9%.

For years, the Space Coast Economic Development Commission in connection with Space Florida, the state's economic development agency, has worked to attract a more diverse aerospace industry that includes design and manufacturing.

In the past, rockets launched from Kennedy Space Center were designed, tested and built outside Florida.

“We were a launch site - which was important and that was a great legacy - but now we could be more," said Dina Reider–Hicks, a director with the Space Coast Economic Development Commission. "In maybe three years, you’ll see this place stronger because it’ll be diversified."

Today, several companies have committed to expand or begin operations in Brevard County, including Rocket Crafters, which is relocating its headquarters from Utah to Titusville, electronics systems provider Sierra Nevada Corporation and aircraft manufacturers Boeing and Embraer.

But hundreds of former Kennedy Space Center shuttle workers still looking for jobs can't wait for these companies to set up shop in Brevard. Their severances and unemployment benefits are coming to an end.

Many former Kennedy Space Center employees still looking for work can be found Friday mornings at St. Gabriel’s Episcopal Church in Titusville. There, they share news about the latest companies hiring or good news about fellow members who found jobs. Several sport T-shirts commemorating the last shuttle, Atlantis, STS-135.

“Our job is to go out of business, essentially," said Kevin Harrington, a former shuttle manager and the group's acting spokesman. He said the network hopes "to find everyone employment or entrepreneurial opportunities.”

Although he has a thriving lawn business, John Bundy stops by the network's Friday morning meetings to catch up with his former co-workers and find out if any companies are hiring.

Bundy says he's hopeful he can return to the aerospace industry one day.

He believes another human space program will once again launch from Florida's Space Coast. He says the United States has the technical know-how to lead a human space program, but right now there's no political will to make it happen.

On Fridays, Bundy cuts grass at property across the Indian River from the Kennedy Space Center where the large Vehicle Assembly Building can be seen on the horizon, next door to his former office.

Bundy has no regrets and is thankful he is one of those who has a job and can pay his bills.

“Any time you're going to do a job that you're going to get paid for, it’s honorable,” he said. “You do the best job that you can … it can be anything from washing dishes to processing space ships.”

soundoff(76 Responses)

He's had 31 years of solid work. What the hell is he complaining about. Retire and give a young person a chance at a future job ya selfish jerk. I bet his retirement check is terrific.

August 23, 2012 at 11:20 pm |

imoti varna

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July 31, 2012 at 4:32 pm |

K

Where's the reinventing part of this article? All I saw was gloom and doom and we're done with science, space, and our future.

July 31, 2012 at 3:09 pm |

[AS]

Space Coast, Ghost to Ghost

July 31, 2012 at 12:11 pm |

Hollywood

We should go back to experimenting on domestic, privatly run comanies. We would boost both domestic and foreign economies

July 29, 2012 at 11:10 am |

jrm03063

The shuttle was a grand attempt at dramatically lowering the cost to orbit. It was built as a space truck that could haul heavy loads both ways. While we succeeded in building the vehicle and flying it for a long time, it turned out that this just wasn't a good approach to lowering cost to orbit. The return trip mission never materialized. All that – and it turned out to be much more dangerous than we had hoped. It was a valiant effort – and I'm glad we tried – but we should have stopped flying this 15 years before this.

July 29, 2012 at 10:38 am |

Dude

The future is going to be high tech. We will need scientists and engineers to take part in economy of the future. When you ask science or engineering students what inspired them and NASA / manned space exploration will be the top answers.

When we are reaching further and stretching our limits, people are inspired to reach further. The engineering and science students who will be designing the computers, cars, planes and bridges that will define the prosperity of the future are the ones inspired by NASA.

Today, NASA is not launching people into space at all and we have not been really pushing our limits for some time. China, although many years behind us, is pushing their limits. The people who they send into space are heroes.

For every American who graduates with an engineering degree, six Chinese students will graduate with engineering degrees.

We need to be sending people into space and pushing for missions that go further than ever before. Or we will be the nation watching with envy as someone else does.

July 29, 2012 at 6:00 am |

NewRhimerOfMarine

Does anyone on here HONESTLY think that there is, ever, a "no risk to life", in Space exploration? Especially, in a "market" where the entire Earth is not only "customer' but "shareholder-of-the-business"? In recent years there has been a lot of controversy on "both sides of the Fence" , politically. Every President, since Eisenhower, wanted to "bask in the Glory" when SUCCESS happened, and, "distance themselves" when FAILURE and LOSS-OF-LIFE was a concern, in not only the "Space Race", but, the Militarization-of-Space.
If you doubt this, RE-read "Contact" (assuming you already have) by the late Carl Sagan, who, like his story's main character, "Eleanor", was the "genious / inventor" of SETI (SearchforExtraTerrestrialIntelligence), and, following the book's storyline, was almost always Thwarted and Obstacled at every "turn" of NASA -Management AND The Political Administrations of the US. But, ...as always, in the cycle of "convienence" in human-history; the ispiration of a "Science" is the "POWER" it is capable of generating.

Not the benefit to HUMAN PROGRESS, or, the endeavor into the REALM OF POSSIBLITIES-WITHOUT-LIMIT...but...which person , or, group-of-persons will control that New Science, and, therefore, how powerful they will be able to become.

On a final thought, of this , though...

If we , as Human beings , and, the "highest-form-of-intelligent-creature" of Earth, actually think that all space is "ours-for-the-taking" and that the quote from Carl Sagan's book, "If we are the ONLY intelligent species in the Universe, then it seems like an awful waste of Space."... isn't, truly and heartfully OBSORBED in ALL our own,individual psyche's, then, I fear that "The Challenger Disaster" of The United States Space-Shuttle Program is just a prelude to our demise as a Civilization, brought upon by ourselves. We can STOP WAR. We can DEFEAT FAMINE AND DISEASE. We can BECOME A TRUE, CIVILIZED CIVILIZATION. And, hopefully,...THEN and ONLY THEN, our "neighbors" throughout The Galaxys and The Rest-of-The-Universe will ACCEPT us as a INSPIRATIONAL SPECIES. BUT...we ain't there yet, and, if we don't use all our resources still left TO GET "THERE", the WHY would any other INTELLIGENT SPECIES consider us nothing less than A THREAT to THEIR OWN SURVIVAL? The "Grass May be Greener, on The Other Side of The Universe", but, as this new's story's reference, John Brundy, as a landscaper, could probably tell us, It is still SOMEBODY's ELSE GRASS we maybe cutting, and, they might want it cut THEIR way, not OURS.

July 29, 2012 at 5:30 am |

dancingfrog

I appreciate everyone's opinion/tho't's/concerns/beliefs on the space program & the loss of jobs, etc. The dude w/the lawn business worked for 31 yrs., so like he should have some sort of retirement coming in every month, as those who worked 20 plus yrs did for the same company. And, if they were smart, they invested some money in good places to reap the rewards when they did retire. In the early 60's my late ex-husband worked for Boeing, in Seatle. He was transfered to Louisiana to work on the Apollo program, which he did for over 5 yrs. He was laid off, worked as assistant manager for a Shakey's Pizza place so we could keep the house & feed our family. He was well educated, & determined to find other work, which he did w/in several months w/a well known company, but, it had litle to do w/the space industry. He was well paid, good benefits, & worked his way up in the dividsion he was assigned. I truely believe, had President John Kennedy not been shot, & killed, our space program would have expanded, & man would have established a base on the moon, rather than the ISS. And, I further believe, we would have been to Mars by now. Mr. Kennedy was very far-sighted in that respect, & could see the value of space exploration. Unfortunately, things happened as they did, for whatever the reasons. We as Americans, need to stop the bickering, finger pointing, buck passing, & get busy, & do what we as Americans have done for over 2 centuries ... make necessary changes, whereever the changes need to be made. Pull up you baby knickers, & buckle down. For starters, we need to close ALL loopholes in the tax system, a 10% tax across the board, including the railroads, who pay NO taxes what-so-ever, there would be soo much money, the American congress couldn't spend it fast enu'f! We could have all sorts of government sponsored programs to help those who need help, & I wont waste time/space listing them here. Second, w/the loopholes closed, we won't need the IRS, so they can find jobs in other government agencies. Thirdly, close ALL foreign military bases, & bring our people home where they belong. Stop most, if not all, foreign aid, & call ALL our loans in as of yesterday! If anyone has ever seen pix of the Russian rockets, they use the same booster rockets they've been using for the past 40 plus yrs. They don't have "frills" that are unneeded, as the Americans do. Remember the $500. toilet seat scandle? Thats just what it is .. padding the bills/expense accounts/ over-pricing for everything in the space program from the nuts & bolts to the paint & heat sheilding tiles on the bottom of the shuttles. You name it, & it's waay over-priced! It's the American way ... GREED! Too bad, the innocent have to pay for the guilty. I am amased, to see many people starting up small businesses, & succeeding, instead of sitting around whinning about what they don't have, or the way it used to be. Come on Americans, lets once more be the power we used to be, it's not too late. Education is part of the key .. a good one can be obtained pretty much for nothing. Libraries are full of books, as well as the internet, if one is "connected". Volunteering is not out of style either, a good way to network. There are many, just in this country, who could use a helping hand up.

July 29, 2012 at 1:48 am |

WHAT?

He has a job and there are many others with far better qualifications still looking. (Thanks, Obama.)

July 28, 2012 at 9:02 pm |

Hollywood

I wish that people would get their facts straight before spewing out nonsense. This should b a forum 4 intelligent discussion.

July 28, 2012 at 7:48 pm |

GoDucks73

So the joke still stands......Needs Another Seven Astronauts

July 28, 2012 at 2:52 pm |

Galaxy Prime

NASA used to be the crown jewel of all of the government agencies but keeping it properly funded became insurmountable. Now it is up to private companies to step up and lead the way to space. Also, space exploration should be done by all nations under the UN flag – or do we want to have American, Chinese, Russian, German, French moonbases attacking each other over territorial and mineral rights in the future? Let's leave the politics of the Earth on Earth and explore space as one people.

July 28, 2012 at 1:25 pm |

William

Uhhm, I have this mining machine that has application in space. Burns iron oxide in rock and ore to scribe into the ground much like old style phonograph. Some 11,000 feet deep on Baffin Island we came across a type of element not found on the periodic table, we call it flightstone, FS. This mining machine has 4 magnitudes. The family model, corporate model, national model and planet model. The engines for the planet model, and there are 4 of them, each one, the size of the pentagon to be built in the Motor City. Space mining and exploration with fuel FS and a simple machine from Exodus.

July 29, 2012 at 10:51 pm |

737-800

I guess we forgot to ask what direction all that HOPE and CHANGE were going to go. Obvioulsy we though one way and the current POTUS thought another way. Have we learned our lesson yet? Can we afford to keep this POTUS in office for another 4 years where he does not have to worry about running again. If he is reelected again for 4 more years the USA will no doubt fail. The problem is the Republicans have put a Problem Child up to run against him. Being a life long Republican, I see NO satisfactory candidate running on either side of the fence, they are both full of Bull and not worthy of the office. We need someone with drive, determination, conviction, morals,and honesty or is that asking to much for our next national leader?

July 28, 2012 at 12:29 pm |

ronjon

You are so anxious to blame the current POTUS for what was a decision by Bush 1. Even Bush 2 tried to rectify the error with his too far too fast Mars initiative. The idea of Mars was fine, but the route to Mars was and still is, through the moon. When I left the agency in 2005, it was because the handwriting was on the wall: when shuttle ended, manned flight would end. Orion/Constellation was never supported politically, and with the mess Bush 2 handed the current administration, there is not now nor will there be for a while, a renewed, serious effort to put humans back in space besides where they can get to on a Soyuz. This president is not perfect, but the demise of human exploration is not his doing. No matter how much you whine and prevaricate, it's a Republican problem (with a little help from Clinton). With 4 more years of Obama and a LOT of luck in Europe, we might be in a position to think about human exploration again. I assure you that none of the candidates put forward by the GOP at ANY level, from mayor to POTUS, will get us back on track here. Bush made it impossible for this president or any other in the next few years to rectify this huge blunder.

July 28, 2012 at 1:04 pm |

Havildar

If there is blame for the lack of a manned US Space program we can just look at how we have wasted this Nations wealth since the early 1980's with stupid Tax Cuts, useless Wars, and idiots elected to Congress example this 2010 Class of nutty free spending congresspersons. USA losses while Russia, and the Asian Giants win.

July 28, 2012 at 1:16 pm |

Al Bundy

Yeah, let's do away with the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy. That will put about $85 Billion back into the treasury. However, the government spends about $17 Billion in a day. Do the math, Einstein. It will fund the country for less than a week. Removing those tax cuts to repay the debt is nothing more than a ruse.

July 28, 2012 at 1:47 pm |

johnharry

evidently you should try reading some background. You know the history of the announcement of the retiring of the shuttles by George W. Bush.

July 28, 2012 at 1:21 pm |

Eyes wide shut

Yes it's so easy to blame the current potus. Thank god for the intelligent posts correctly pointing of the causes. So much the blame being laid at obamas feet was done by previous admins. And the ill informed buy into it like fish biting worms on a hook. If Obama loses his bid the ill informed will have contributed to the last nail in the coffin of the middle class. Gosh, a lot of you guys are highly educated people. Learn what you are about to vote for and please stop voting against your own interests. Stop look in the mirror and be honest with yourself and the future direction of this country. The last chance is at hand.

July 28, 2012 at 1:54 pm |

Michael Flynn

The Shuttle's program end was established well before Mr. Obama was elected by the Majority of the American People. You can thank Lyndon Johnson for having paid the ransom for Civil Rights by putting JSC in Texas, Stennis in Mississippi, MSC in Alabama, and the list goes on.

The big mistake of NASA after Apollo, was to concentrate on low earth orbit, rather than establishing a permanent presence on the moon. By maintaining a moon base, and the constant re-supply and re-shuffling of personel that would have entailed, would have provided NASA with the experience it needed to begin the exploration of Mars and other nearby planetary bodies, when greater propulsion systems became available. Now, the planning of manned missions to Mars, nearby asteroids or even the moon would have to begin from scratch. What a waste of time.

July 28, 2012 at 11:45 am |

Dan

Sure, let's put resorts up there so the the 1% will have us serving them latte's! I am sure Grover can come up with the revenue. Here's an idea! Let's pay for Reagan's 1000 boat Navy and million man Army that was spent decades ago with the trickle down theory. It worked, we just got a trickle of the country's wealth!

July 28, 2012 at 11:53 am |

Josh

NASA's dirty little secret was that Apollo was a disaster waiting to happen. It was luck, not technology, that got men to the moon and back. And Nixon knew that and that's why Apollo was ended as quickly as possible.

Apollo was NASA willing the Powerball lottery for 6 out of 7 times in a row. Try to grasp those odds.

Establishing moon bases with that technology is a joke. Its ridiculous. Its foolhardy. Its merely scifi.

July 28, 2012 at 1:38 pm |

Dan

The CIA wanted Skylab to spy on the Russians, the rest was just cover story. By the time we landed on the moon the CIA realized that they didn't need people in space to take pictures. The shuttle was supposed to fly twice a month and be delivered by an aircraft to low orbit. Funding cuts left it with a faulty delivery system and no customers until the ISS.

July 28, 2012 at 2:23 pm |

FactChecker

All the money went to manned space and all the scientific knowledge came from unmanned missions. Unmanned programs have explored where we couldn't dream of sending manned missions, for a tiny cost, at no risk to life. They go where we want to go, see what we want to see, and test what we want to test.

July 28, 2012 at 4:41 pm |

Hollywood

So much of what we have learned from missioms and became applied science here on earth will come to a grinding halt. Advances in medicine is but one example.

Any loss of human space exploration whether it is close to the planet or in the next star system is a loss for humanity. And what we really need is a propulsion center that is not a chemically fueled rocket. I see where at the University of Florida. They overcame gravity with a strong magnetic field. They were floating flowers and frogs in the field.

All of you that want to save the planet; well your best bet is getting humanity in space and off the planet.

As for there being nothing left to explore close by as somebody commented. I still do not see Helium 3 being transported here from the Moon; a plentiful energy source that could easily supply us for the next two centuries; and no; oil would not become obsolete.

July 28, 2012 at 11:21 am |

Gallienus

I agree that chemical rocket propulsion is space is a waste of time. We really need to focus on nuclear propulsion and nuke power systems for space orbitals/ habitats.

July 31, 2012 at 9:48 am |

Dan

Where is your precious "Norquist" now dirtbags? You want to cut food for the need and health care for the poor but not over-educated idiots from the "spaced-out coast?" Why can't highly educated people get jobs in Florida without the government? Maybe they were only employable BECAUSE of the government, sounds a lot like welfare to me! Suck-it R's!

July 28, 2012 at 11:17 am |

Bob Knippel

Having watched the Apollo moon landings in 1969 and the early 1970's, I can honestly say I have been extremely disappointed in the space program since then, as manned space flight pancaked after Apollo, and has done very little in the way of pushing human boundaries. It seems there is no limitation regarding expensive military intervention in foreign nations, or huge handouts to struggling nations in the way of financial aid, so to let American manned space flight lapse into dependency upon foreign lift vehicles is truly a lack of vision and integrity.

July 28, 2012 at 10:02 am |

JJ

I couldn't agree more. Whats worse is this governments stated intention to let private enterprise take over a large part of the domestic space effort- no more going to space for discovery or science, just to make a buck. Very sad indeed.

July 28, 2012 at 10:14 am |

Dan

Where is your "free-enterprise" ideology? Smaller government is better right?

July 28, 2012 at 11:57 am |

737-800

Rememer in spite of being in national debt up to our ears, we still contribute foreigh aid to every country in the world except for two, one of which is 90 miles off our shore called Cuba. What is wrong with that picture?

July 28, 2012 at 12:39 pm |

Havildar

The new World would never have been discovered if Columbus had waited for the greedy private businesses to get into the act of exploration. It took Government to invest in that project. Small Govt means no progress as we can see.

July 28, 2012 at 1:22 pm |

tbowers

So what did those people, like in the Challenger explosion, even die for ? it's like we gave up on them !

July 28, 2012 at 7:33 am |

jrvinnh

Excellent observation.

July 28, 2012 at 7:38 am |

Dan

They died because Reagan had a speech he needed to give and the engineers were overruled.

July 28, 2012 at 12:03 pm |

jrvinnh

NASA = Needs Apollo Started Again

July 28, 2012 at 7:10 am |

Jt_flyer

I'm a big advocate of the US space program. NASA is the only government agency i support. I support private space programs even more.

The space shuttle was nothing more than a military space truck.

The US is back to deep space exploration. Where we should have always focused. Deep space exploration isn't something our military machine is interested in. Can't blow something up from Mars.

July 28, 2012 at 6:57 am |

Duncan

There is no way that private industry is going to replace NASA! Once the 5 billionaires that can afford the ticket for a joyride there is no more market! Obama says that private industry is the space travel of the future. The only reason why there is any private space industry is because NASA has been funding them. Once government dollars are gone they will whither and die. There just isnt a market for them.

July 28, 2012 at 5:42 am |

Layne

I respectfully disagree. I agree that there will be no market for exploration and discovery. Scientific advancement will certainly suffer. But communication companies like AT&T and the broadcast networks will still want to put satellites into orbit.

July 28, 2012 at 8:08 am |

meniisoc

Yes, satellites are still coming to space. Only the big problem for the US is, that Europe, Russia and China can to that much cheaper and more reliable.

July 28, 2012 at 8:43 am |

Havildar

Which under Romney American jobs and space launches would be shipped to Russia, China etc.based on cheaper cost.

July 28, 2012 at 1:27 pm |

What?

Way to go Congress, now not only don't we have our own way into space, you laid off 8000 workers while feeding us the BS that the economy is getting better. Why don't you lay off your lazy asses, because you don't do crap for you money, you are just a strain for life on the economy!!!!!!!

July 28, 2012 at 1:51 am |

Jokes on you

In before obvious China trolls try to mislead us about NASA because they can't compete with us without sabotage.

July 28, 2012 at 3:53 am |

mlg4035

Don't forget the Boeing Company as an option guys! Their industry is aerospace, so that's right your alley! You might have to move to work for them, but it's worth it! Good luck!

July 28, 2012 at 12:00 am |

Havildar

Boeing keeps shifting manufacturing Jobs to China.

July 28, 2012 at 1:33 pm |

saddened

If our government spent as much money on NASA as it does on running the ACs at military bases this wouldn't even be an issue.

July 27, 2012 at 8:54 pm |

Jack Bissette

Please State the facts. Mr Bush did in fact cancel the shuttle program. However...... Mr Bush had alternative delivery programs set to go. The programs would have been operational by now if it wasn't for the "loser in chief" cancelling the i billion dollar program. We now pay Russia 55 million dollars per astronaut...... for a ride. Who would have ever thought that the United States would be paying communist countries for ride..... a super power. Well.......the "loser in chief" has destroyed our military too. It's not about money and restraint either.....not the money this loser throws around. It's all about punishing the US for it's greatness..... some thing a Marxist will never understand. The "loser in chief" has taken everything great and reduced it to nothing. Can't blame the war's...... in 1945.... WW2 accounted for 25% of our GDP. Both war's/ war on terror (oop's .. man made disaster's) account's for 2.8% of our GDP. THAT'S IT...2.8%! He destroy's everything he touches. I love his line......"we tried their way..... now try our's"... almost 300 years of free market/ capitalism.... that has lead to the highest standard of living the world has ever seen. Marxism does not work! Apparently he never got the memo.

July 27, 2012 at 4:44 pm |

Ed C

Jack,
Every administration puts it's hallmark on the Space Program and many others.
The current program addresses the future of space travel, and SpaceX, for example is doing a pretty good job on the commercial side.
If you have a bone to pick, pick it with the past administrations also. Many programs were started and cancelled.
Remember the ASRM and the X-33?
The current President didn't cancel those.
Perhaps Limbaugh or Hannity told you he did and you believed them, right.
Quit bellyaching and go out and find another job.

July 28, 2012 at 12:53 am |

TD

Wow. Your insight is overwhelming. How much is "i billion dollar" anyway? I have never heard of that number. You say "Mr Bush had alternative delivery programs set to go." It is true that the Constellation program existed, but it was never funded (even under Mr. Bush) anywhere near the level needed to have it ready by now. By the time it was canceled in 2010 it was going to be ready to go to the ISS around 2015, and that was optimistic. The problem was that NASA simply did not have the money to run the Shuttle and ISS, and develop a successor to the Shuttle at the same time.

Do you realize Russia is not a communist country? Are you saying that the colonies exercised free market/capitalism, or is 236 years "about 300"? Exactly how has Mr. Obama destroyed our military? Exactly what Marxist policies has he enacted? Are Canada and essentially every country in Europe Marxist?

July 28, 2012 at 9:52 am |

Math Prof

i=the square root of negative one, an imaginary number which forms the basis for the set of complex numbers, without which no rocket design could possibly succeed.

July 28, 2012 at 10:12 am |

TD

I guess it is true that imaginary numbers actually are important in Congressional budgets.

July 28, 2012 at 11:49 am |

Havildar

Strange the Worlds biggest Communist Countries like China and Russia are still in business of launching people into space while the worlds largest Capitalist Country has failed again thanks to greed.

July 28, 2012 at 1:37 pm |

toxxic

space program stopped. brillant minds an talent wasted. a wars that should have been ended years ago. how is it stupidity runs rampant thru out this planet. we where all put here to take care of this planet an each other . knowledge science exploration preservation are what the human condition should be about. and I know Im not the only human that knows an feel the same. consider this a warning

July 27, 2012 at 4:20 pm |

Fritz

Blame the American people. They're the ones who vote these jokers into office. If the American people really wanted to advance human space travel, they would have set up shop at a lunar outpost by now and thereby spread their seed beyond our fragile planet.. They don't really care about the future of their country. Only their greedy little lives matter.

July 27, 2012 at 11:54 pm |

What?

Blame Congress!! They are the ones that pamper their own lazy asses and set themselves up for life, while doing nothing except fight like spoiled little brats with each other in Washington. They are all useless and have no interest in this country other than how they can take more money from the middle class while getting paid off by big oil, and their other large corporation buddies.

July 28, 2012 at 1:55 am |

Hollywood

Very poor financial planning and a lack of goals 4 the future. Why havnt we learned 2 applyWHATweHAVElearned from the space missions?

Sunny Florida has sufficient sunshine to power 20 million homes but ranks 49th in greentech job creation, thanks to Gov. Rick Scott (R). His pledge to create 700,000 jobs did not include those in the renewable energy sector. A development hatched in Florida is a LEED rated composite that has thermal properties in part akin to NASA Space Shuttle tiles. The composite could "Revolutionize construction" according Miami Dade County building code officials, the strictest in America. The Hurricane Testing Laboratory (HTL) found no criteria for testing the product and as and option leads to "Solarizing America on the Cheap" . In addition, property owners do not have to come forth with up front money to benefit from this innovation. .If Florida echoed cloudy Germany in the clean energy revolution, 45,000 Floridians would have green jobs and billions of long term energy costs would be saved.. CNN is invited to "visually" disclose details of this game-changer,

July 27, 2012 at 3:04 pm |

Solo

It was a very financially bloated program. As for Obama, I agree – but, this nation allowed a generation of You Tube kids and historical guilt-driven soccer moms to elect him. McCain looks a lot better now, doesn't he? Florida needs to cope just like Detroit has been forced to do with the millions of job losses due to the automotive industry crisis. We're all being short changed these days – paid less at work, paying more for everything else. Make your vote count this time.

July 27, 2012 at 12:39 pm |

Ashland

Bush announced the cancellation of the shuttle program in 2004, before you ever heard of Obama.

July 27, 2012 at 1:07 pm |

Layne

If McCain had been elected, we's still be in Afghanistan, we'd be up to our eyeballs in Iraq, we'd have boots on the ground in Libya and Syria, we'd be fighting in Iran, and possibly even Pakistan. We'd be spending about two billion a DAY in military actions, compared to the one billion a day we spend now. Can you explain how this would improve our economy?

July 28, 2012 at 8:17 am |

meniisoc

Pssst. Maybe you have been blindfolded by the lies obama is telling for the past 4 years, but there are still 90.000 US troops in afghanistan active today. I can't wait for the upcoming elections. Will it be the American idiot romney, or the completely incompetent and clueless obama who will blame former presidents for everything for the coming 20 years. Either way, China and Europe will win.

July 28, 2012 at 8:53 am |

Jem0276

@Tim B. I voted for Obama.......wheres my "Change". Nuff said.

July 27, 2012 at 11:39 am |

Tim B

I appreciate your point. It's too bad you had to cheapen it with the political name calling. Does Drudge pay you guys to post off his links?

July 27, 2012 at 11:33 am |

Andrew

Probably one of the best team managers out there mowing lawns. Talk about a waste of talent.

July 27, 2012 at 11:23 am |

Jem0276

I live on the Space Coast, I have seen the toll the end of the Shuttle program has taken on our towns and our people. I think it is shameful after all the space program has given the private sector and the world that president Suckbama has continued perpetual wars in the middle east to no good end. Dirtbagbama has inflated the military budget while hardworking smart Americans go jobless because of cuts to NASA's budget. The Space Program made us proud to be Americans,I know it did me. Shame on you Obama for deriding and cutting the budget of things you dont understand.

July 27, 2012 at 11:12 am |

What?

Braindead Bush cancelled the shuttle program, not Obama, Obama actually extended it for two missions, so get your facts straight before opening your blow hole

July 28, 2012 at 1:59 am |

Jerry

Bush cancelled it, yes, but the cancellation wasn't to go into effect until the Antares/Orion replacement was almost ready to go. The "extension" you credit to Obama was only an extension of HIS (Obama's) original deadline for ending the program. Get YOUR facts straight!

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